France signs USD 253 million loan agreement to boost African Development Fund

The African Development Fund (ADF) has signed a significant concessional donor loan agreement with the Government of France to the tune of USD 253 million as support for the 14th replenishment of the Fund.
Established in 1972, the ADF represents an enduring development partnership between African countries and donors. The Fund is part of the African Development Bank Group and helps to improve the lives of millions of people across Africa through loans and grants to projects and programmes.
Its resources are replenished by donors every three years. The 14th replenishment is intended to mobilize the funds necessary for the period 2017 to 2019.
The acting Vice-President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer at the African Development Bank, Hassatou N’Sele, signed the ADF concessional donor loan agreement with the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Agence française de Développement (AFD), Jean-Pierre Marcelli, in Paris.
The Agence française de Developpement negotiated and signed the loan agreement on behalf of the French Treasury as part of the contributions of France to the Fourteenth Replenishment of the Resources of the African Development Fund (ADF-14).
The move by France is the first time a donor country would sign a concessional donor loan agreement for the ADF since the Fund management and donors agreed in November 2016 to include a loan component within its financing framework.